Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1887-10-06
coRNERED BY BEARS.
4 Colorado Miners Discourasfng Experi.
ence with Bruin.

4 Colorado Miners Diseourasing Expera.
ence with Bruin.
Eyes, sir. that was about the closest
call ever had"
This remark. coming from we'll
built good-looklng young miner. and
made with a serious infection that left
no doubt of its sincerity, attracted the
attention of a reporter who happened
to be standing close to a group of min
ing men few days ago.
1T was last winter" continued the
miner. when me and my partner,
Jim Rogers, was working an assess
ment on couple of old prospects OF
ours up in Geneva Park about hall
way between Grant and Montezuma.
Grub had given out few days before.
and while Jim was driving the work
on one-hundred-foot level through
solid rock, started over to Montezu-
ma for supply of grub. Snow!
Well, l should remark. And cold.
Well. if we hadn't had to have grub
nothing else would have got me over
that seven miles and back. but it had
to come over. and brought it. l had
just got to the cabin and fixed up sup.
per for Jim and me. and got the dishes
on the table. Istepped to the door to
throw out some potatO-parings. talk
ing to Jim. When. as turned around
at the door, saw, looking through the
little window at the side of the cabin,
one of the ugliest and biggest bears
that ever want to see. She was sit.
ting up on her launches and looking
right at me. and as 1 turned little
more l saw through the partly open
door two more big bears In front of
the cabin. We didn't have even a
dirk-knife in the cabin, nor gun or re-
volyer, and the AK was at the wood
pile forty feet from the door. and the
two bears between me and it. I tell
you thought it was rainin' bears for
minute. A good deal quicker than
Pm telling this l jumped for the poker
that we used to fasten the cabin door
with, and slipped it into place. Just
then the old she-bear at the window
gave growl and made pass at the
window with her paw. Biff, it came,
sash. glass. and all on the
floor. Before the noise had
stopped smash came the other
bears against the door, and it's only
miracle that it didn't come in. The
poker was bent all out of shape. Well.
Jim and me did lots of thinking about
that time. and if ever wanted 40
repeater wanted it right then. You
see. the snow had been lying awful
deep there, and the bears were raven
Gus and most likely hadn't had any
thing to eat for a long time. They
have to get terribly hungry before
they will attack cabin like that.
1--WE threw burning paper and fire.
brands. dishes and every thing we
could get hands on at the old bear in
the window, but she just stood there
and glared at us. l never thought
there could be so much fire in an eye
rs there was in hers. She stood there
looking at us and we at her, when all
at once we heard a noise on the roof.
You bet we knew what it was, too,
and were about ready to give up then.
The two-year olds, the old bears cubs.
had got up on the dirt roof of the cab
in. Pretty soon they commenced
throwin' dirt, and in about two min
1tes had got down to the poles that
held the dirt. We could look right
ap through the poles where the dirt
vas clawed off and see them. And
wasn't they mad? They would claw
along lengthwise of the pole and rake
the bark off every clip and every minute
We were expecting them to get their
claws in between the poles and then
we would be gone. If they had known
enough to give one or two scrapes
sideways .hey could easily have
scooped off enough poles to let them
down in. What then? Well. the
bears would have had square meal,
and l wouldn't be here telling you
about it. All the time they were
scraping away up there l stood with
the straw bedtick on the floor open
and lighted candle in my hand. As
told Jim. it was poor chance, but
I'd rather be burned up than eaten
up. The old bear stayed right there
at the window all the time watching
us. 1t was too small for her, or she'd
have been in herself After while
they seemed to get tired. and. after
prowling around the cabin until We
were near frightened to death. they
went off I measured the biggest
ones tracks in the snow next MORN
ing, and it was fourteen inches long.
1t wasn't long before that cabin had a
rifle in it, and you don't catch me in a
bear county again with no protectio n
but a straw bed and candle. -